Passenger Trains

In the early 1960's the main population of railway riders were new immigrants, military troops (especially during the two world wars) and upper class tourists. After World War II travel on the CPR became a lot less popular, because cars and travel by air started to become more common. To get more people to ride on the trains they decided that they would make some specialty trains. This would result in more business and more options for the people who wanted to ride on the Canadian Pacific Railway.

Silk Trains - These trains were used to transport the most rare silk around the country. At the end of World War II, the invention of nylon made silk less valuable so the silk trains died out.

Funeral Trains - These trains carried the remains of important people. Some of the most famous funeral trains were the ones that carried Prime Minister Sir John A Macdonald and Sir William Cornelius Van Horne. The funeral trains would transport the remains of the bodies to where the funeral would take place.

Royal Trains - When members of the royal family came to Canada they would ride in one of the CPR royal trains. Touring important Canadian landmarks and beautiful terrain.

Schools Cars - On some trains they would have a car with a teacher onboard to teach children who were far away from schools. Each car had a blackboard and a few sets of chairs and desks. They also contained miniature libraries. This provided education for children while they were on board.

Holiday Train - Starting in 1999, the CPR runs a Holiday Train every year

through the months of November to December, the train collects donations for the Canadian food bank. People

that come to see the train may even come on board and check out some of the holiday decorations and vintage passenger cars. Since its launch in 1999, the Holiday Train has raised more than $2.3 million and 506 tons of

food for North American food banks.

Spirit Train - In 2008, Canadian Pacific partnered with the 2010 Olympic and Paralympics Winter Games to present a "Spirit Train" tour that featured Olympic themed events at various stops.